For a little recap, 2023’s DCEU film The Flash has been released on the streaming platform Max and while it has divided a lot of DC fans, I can say without a shred of doubt in my mind that this DCEU film is the best of the bunch. Barry Allen attempts to go back in time to prevent his mother from being killed but creates an alternate timeline where the evil Zod comes back to annihilate Earth and must enlist the help of his younger self, and older Batman and Supergirl.
I haven’t had this much fun watching a movie since I saw Deadpool II. I felt the raw emotion of the film with every passing minute and loved almost every second of it and here is why.
Michael Keaton
Seeing Michael Keaton return as the Caped Crusader since 1992 is probably one of the best things about this movie. His presence is a shot of grandiose energy that has been missing from a lot of superhero films. While many comic-book movies will often rely on action sequences to get their audience to watch and many of the characters seem to resemble each other rather than having them be their own person.
Keaton stands out as a top performer and comes into the limelight back as Batman with the same stoic charm that he had in his previous two films that never feels out of place or dull. His magnitude is one to be lauded.
Supergirl
In addition to Keaton’s return, Sasha Calle comes onto the big screen as she flies in to help save the day as Supergirl. We first see the hero when she is in a Siberian high-security prison cell as the two Barrys and Batman attempt to break her out and upon their release, she is able to get her powers back with the use of the sun rays and subdue the soldiers.
She comes with a magnificent sense of heartfelt heroism that never wanes throughout her screen time. It’s breathtaking looking at Calle’s passionate performance as the hero.
Also Read: Sasha Calle Reveals ‘The Flash’ Scene That Almost Broke Her: “My body was hurting a lot”
The Villain
While many may have an issue with the third act and the villain, I think it’s incredibly brilliant to, spoiler alert, make the younger Barry the true villain. When the heroes attempt to take down Zod, Supergirl is killed by Zod and Batman dies in the fray. The two Barrys attempt to go back in time to alter the events but fail every time. It is then revealed that the dark speedster that knocked Barry out of the speed force was actually the young Barry Allen who was still trying to fix the mistakes to save Batman and Supergirl.
What is so interesting about the villain is that every good villain always believes themselves to be doing what is right. Thanos thought that wiping half the population was right in saving the universe. Zod thought that creating a new Krypton on top of Earth was right. The younger version of the Flash believes that continuing to save Bruce and Supergirl is the best course of action even though, the more he does it, the more he begins to collapse the multiverse.
This villain transcends the standard superhero villain as Barry is literally forced to fight with himself, which is the result of what happens when you refuse to let things go.
Barry’s Arc
At the start of the story, Barry starts out as a hopeless young man who is forced to deal with the fact that his father will go away forever for the framed murder of his wife and must time travel back into the past to stop the event from occurring. It’s only after he time travels that he realizes that letting go of the past is the only way to move on.
It’s a short and sweet lesson but a very memorable one. Holding onto something is very toxic, as evidenced through Barry’s dark speedster side and it’s only when we let go of things that we heal.
Follow us for more entertainment coverage on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
